With delayed rains in tea producing areas of West Bengal forcing public tea auction centres to raise procurement prices of tea, the Western India Tea Dealers Association (WITDA) has decided to follow suit.
“Following delayed rains, there may have been a crop loss of 5-10 per cent in tea producing areas of Assam while those of West Bengal has witnessed close to 50 per cent. This has resulted in tea procurement prices rise by Rs 30 a kg. We could have absorbed the price rise for just a couple of months. But since the central government is yet to appoint a minister for reining in these auction centres, we have decided to raise tea prices by Rs 50 a kg,” said Piyush Desai, president of WITDA at a press conference.
Moreover, in order to tackle the situation, WITDA would also form a committee comprising of 7-10 regional brands of Gujarat to help tea traders who have run out of stock.
“The tea traders of Gujarat have been requested to support this initiative by donating their buffer stock to the association. By doing so, the traders will have the right to recover 50 per cent of the quantity supplied to them.
On our side, Wagh Bakri Tea Group would be donating around 30,000 kg of tea,” said Desai, who is also the chairman and managing director of Wagh Bakri Tea Group.
Talking about shortage of tea in Gujarat, Desai said that while the state consumes 60-70 million kg a year, the supply is short by 12-15 million kg a year.
According to Desai, India produces around 980 million kg of tea of which exports constitute around 180 million kg.
“Of the remaining, around 350 million kg is sold as packaged tea while the rest is sold in loose form,” he added. Currently, the country also imports 15 million kg of tea from SAARC countries.
